Characterization and Functional Beverage Development using Coenzyme Q10-Impregnated Beta-glucan

• Author / Creator

  Liu, Nian

• Pressurized gas-expanded liquid (PGX) technology is a supercritical fluid technique used for producing micro/nano-particles, agglomerates and fibers from an aqueous solution of a high molecular weight biopolymer, which can also be employed for encapsulation or impregnation. PGX-processed beta-glucan (BG) and CoQ10-impregnated beta-glucan (iBG) were investigated, in terms of their physicochemical properties and potential as nutraceutical ingredients for functional beverages. Helium ion microscope, differential scanning calorimeter, X-ray diffractometer, AutoSorb iQ and rheometer were used to determine the particle morphology, thermal properties, crystallinity, surface area and viscosity, respectively. Results showed that both BG (7.7 μm) and iBG (6.1 μm) were produced as micrometer-scale particles, while CoQ10 nanoparticles were present in iBG with the average diameter of 92 nm; CoQ10 was successfully impregnated onto BG using the PGX process without interrupting the porous structure and viscosity of BG; and CoQ10 present in iBG was in its amorphous form adsorbed on the porous structure of BG. In addition, the effects of shear rate (1.29 s-1 to 129 s-1), concentration (0.15%, 0.2%, 0.3% w/v) and temperature (0 oC to 80 oC) on the viscosity of BG and iBG solutions were investigated. As expected, viscosity increased with concentration, and decreased with temperature. However, shear rate had no effect on the viscosity of both BG and iBG solutions, demonstrating Newtonian behavior at these concentrations. The formulation of an orange-flavored functional beverage containing BG or iBG and sweetened with stevia extract was developed and the quality of the beverages was evaluated by sensory panels. There was no overall difference between the beverages prepared with BG and iBG. Ideal profile method (IPM) was applied to evaluate the overall consumer acceptance of the beverages prepared with 0.2% iBG. The effect of providing health information was also tested, and the positive effect of health information of ingredients including stevia extract, beta-glucan and CoQ10 on overall acceptance was demonstrated. Determination of the physicochemical properties contributes to the fundamental understanding of the behavior of the bioactive combination, CoQ10 and BG in powder form. As well, the prototype functional beverage developed demonstrated the potential use of PGX-processed BG and iBG as nutraceutical ingredients in beverage products.

• Subjects / Keywords

  • PGX technology
  • Beverage development
  • Impregnation
  • Characterisation
  • Coenzyme Q10
  • Beta-glucan

• Graduation date

  Spring 2017

• Type of Item

  Thesis

• Degree

  Master of Science

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/R32V2CN98

• License

  This thesis is made available by the University of Alberta Libraries with permission of the copyright owner solely for non-commercial purposes. This thesis, or any portion thereof, may not otherwise be copied or reproduced without the written consent of the copyright owner, except to the extent permitted by Canadian copyright law.